Trickster-God-Creator - 1433 Words

Tricksters appear in the mythology and folklore of many cultures around the world. Although the power and relative divinity of each Trickster varies from tradition to tradition, Tricksters have important roles in the creation, development, and sometimes destruction, of each culture. The Coyote of Native North American traditions is often depicted as assisting the â€Å"Great Mystery† or â€Å"Great Spirit† in the creating and populating of the world (Leeming). In the Greek myths Hermes is initially a sly infant who captures a tortoise with his untruths and fashions the first lyre from its shell, but eventually transitions to a place amongst the Olympic pantheon as the messenger of the gods. In the Norse myths of the Scandinavian countries, Loki is a†¦show more content†¦Coyote is sometimes purely self-concerned, such as in the Sioux story of â€Å"Coyote, Iktome, and the Rock† (Leeming 50-2), providing the subject for cautionary morality tales. He is als o often the victim of his own pride, such as his attempt to stay awake by propping open his eyes in order to be the first to arrive at Spirit Chiefs lodge at dawn and receive a new name. Coyote falls asleep anyway, retains his name, and creates a permanent slant in his eyes (Dove 17-26). At other times, however, Coyote is selfless and miraculous. In the tale of â€Å"Montezuma and Coyote in Canoes,† from the Papago tradition of Arizona, after the Great Mystery has made the earth, and people have been made to populate it, led by Montezuma, Coyote comes to the great leader of men and instructs the chief to build a canoe. Montezuma doesnt understand why he would need a canoe, but before long a flood of Biblical magnitude washes away the land, and only Coyote and Montezuma survive to lead the new people the Great Mystery creates to repopulate (Leeming 110-11). It would seem easier to allow even the chief to perish in the flood if Coyote really is purely the self-important Trickst er so often depicted, but he seems intuitively to know that Montezuma will be a better leader to â€Å"teach the people all the things they would need to know to survive† (111). Similarly, in the story of â€Å"Coyote and the Footrace,† Coyote allows his own son to be killed in order to teach the rituals for burial of the deadShow MoreRelated Mythology Essay887 Words   |  4 Pagesevery culture reveal the power of love, with it, its accompanying jealousy and anxiety; the conflict between generations, the old and new, the mischief of the trouble makers and the underlying diversity and stability of human nature. Although their gods sprang forth from diverse and distinctive cultures, the Greek and Egyptian Pantheons share many similarities and differences between one another. The oldest Greek myths can be traced to three main sources: Homer, Hesiod and The Homeric Hymns, theseRead MoreMythical Archetype: the Trickster and Pirates of the Caribbean731 Words   |  3 Pagespoint out in a movie, the Trickster. The movie I found that had a thematic significance connecting with the trickster was Pirates of the Caribbean, and the trickster being one of the main characters, Jack Sparrow. The mythic archetype, the trickster is known to break the rules of the gods or nature, sometimes maliciously but usually with ultimately positive effects; though the tricksters initial intentions may have been either positive or negative. Usually, tricksters can be sly or foolish orRead More The Trickster Essay1363 Words   |  6 Pages The Trickster Karl Jungs explanation for the archetypes that surface in cultural and religious literature is that they are the product of what he calls the collective unconsciousness. 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In the second developed episode he meets a hag by a river. He has to carry the hag across the river while trying to answer questions that she puts to him, mostly about love. Hughes describes several of the poems, particularly ‘Lovesong’, ‘The Lovepet’Read MoreEssay about The Trickster in Myth2146 Words   |  9 PagesThe Trickster in Myth Trickster myths, a significant part of most cultures if not all, have permeated the legends and folklore of peoples since the early days of civilized man. The ancient Greeks had Hermes, the Chinese the Monkey King, and the Native American Indians the coyote. These diverse tricksters found within cultures often have many commonalities with each other, and then, often they do not. But this illustrates the very nature of the trickster; ever changing, shifting, shaping, disguisingRead MoreSummary : The Overtime Technology 1509 Words   |  7 PagesTara Price Professor Uselmann FWS: Heros, Gods Monsters November 2nd, 2015 TITLELELEL Overtime technology has become a immense influence into the behaviors of our society. So much so that it seems inevitable that technology’s increasing presence could create a sense codependence. A common example would be the mental struggle of going a day without ones cell phone. This codependence is ultimately the driving force behind the British mini-series Black Mirror, named after the dormant screensRead MoreSummarys on Don Quixote, Othello, Paradise Lost and Popol Vuh1818 Words   |  8 PagesLost and Popol Vuh Fools and tricksters are very closely related and are used simultaneously in poetry and other literary works. A fool can be described as one who is deficient in judgment, sense, or understanding and also can be someone who acts unwisely on a given occasion. A trickster is defined as someone that swindles or plays tricks. Often a trickster is a mischievous or roguish figure in myth or folklore.(Websters Online Dictionary) Fools and trickster are used frequently in poetry andRead MoreVictor Frankenstein Ambition Essay1005 Words   |  5 Pagesultimately punishment for acting like a god. Arrogance is a characteristic that Victor and Prometheus possess, both believing they can manipulate their world. Victor Frankenstein demonstrates his arrogance for the natural world throughout the novel, even predicting â€Å"A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me† (Shelley 84). The quest to further science leads Victor to believe he can become a creator of life. Prometheus manipulates nature